1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to customer service systems, and, more particularly, to detecting redundancies in information provided by customers in a customer service system.
2. Description of the Background Art
Many customer service systems have multiple channels to communicate with customers. During a customer service session, a customer may be transferred from one channel to another channel. For example, a customer may call into an IVR system and then be transferred to a live agent center. Alternately, a customer may use a self-service application provided by a customer service system and then connect with an IVR system or live agent. During a single customer service session, customers are sometimes asked to provide the same information in different channels. For example, a user may be asked by both an IVR system and a live agent to provide his account number. This redundancy often increases the length of the customer service session and frustrates customers. Consequently, it is desirable to be able to automatically detect when customers are asked to unnecessarily repeat information in a multi-channel customer service session. Detecting such redundancies will help an application designer create a better application dialog/flow that eliminates such redundancies, thereby increasing customer satisfaction.